The Five-Year Growth of an Orthopedic Urgent Care Center: Identifying Patient and Center Trends

With emergency department utilization rising at a dramatic rate, orthopedic urgent care centers (oUCCs) have become increasingly popular. The financial viability and basic advantages of oUCCs have been described in the literature, but little is known about the characteristics of patients treated and the diagnoses encountered. The purpose of this study is to report and evaluate the patients and diagnoses that are most commonly seen in an oUCC so that future care may be better tailored to the needs of the patients seeking these services.

All patients seen at a single suburban oUCC in its first and fifth years of operation (2014 and 2019) were identified. The medical records were reviewed to assess patient demographics, diagnoses encountered, and services rendered. The clinical courses of patients treated were also reviewed to identify those who underwent eventual surgery for their presenting complaint.

A total of 24,756 patient visits occurred during the study period, and the number of visits nearly doubled between the first and fifth years (8,301 in 2014 and 16,455 in 2019). The most common diagnoses encountered were lower leg pain, back pain, and foot/ankle pain. Radiographs were obtained in 17,236 visits (70%), most commonly of the knee, elbow, foot, or ankle. A total of 1,334 patients (5.4%) underwent eventual surgery for their presenting complaint - defined as a surgical conversion. Of all the orthopedic subspecialties, sports medicine had the highest rate of surgical conversion (29% of all conversions). The surgical conversion rate increased slightly from year one (4.7%) to year five (5.8%).

OUCCs are an effective means of expanding access to care for patients and increasing the volume of an orthopedic practice. Continued monitoring of the types of patients seen within oUCCs will further optimize care delivery.